ECONOMY

PUB. DATE

December 2008

SOURCE

Background Notes on Countries of the World: Malaysia;Dec2008, p7

SOURCE TYPE

Country Report

DOC. TYPE

Article

ABSTRACT

The article presents information on the economy of Malaysia. Since its independence, the country's real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by an average of 6.5% per year from 1957 to 2005. The government continues to actively manage the economy through its New Economic Policy (NEP) launched in 1971. During the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, the Malaysian economy went into sharp recession. Slower economic growth is currently being experienced by Malaysia because of decreasing global demand which is taking a toll on Malaysian exports.